Construction of 36-MW Kwinana thermal waste-to-energy plant underway

March 11 (Renewables Now) - The construction of Australia’s first thermal waste-to-energy plant, with a baseload capacity of 36 MW, kicked off on Friday in the city of Kwinana with Western Australia premier Mark McGowan attending the groundbreaking ceremony, the premier’s office announced.

The plant, named Avertas Energy, was developed by Macquarie Capital (Australia) Ltd and Phoenix Energy Australia Pty Ltd with an investment of AUD 668 million (EUR 418.5/USD 470.4m). The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) backed the project with AUD 23 million, while the Clean Energy Finance Corporation provided up to AUD 90 million in debt finance.

Avertas Energy, jointly owned by a consortium formed by Macquarie and the Dutch Infrastructure Fund (DIF), is located within the Kwinana Industrial Area.

The construction job was awarded to Spanish infrastructure and renewable energy company Acciona SA (BME:ANA), whereas Veolia Australia and New Zealand (Veolia ANZ) will be in charge of the operation and maintenance (O&M) of the plant for 25 years.

Once in operation, the facility will divert up to 400,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste from the non-recyclable curbside collection each year and generate enough electricity to power around 50,000 households.